Brake-shoe-operating device



YJuly 9, 1929. w NOWAK 1,720,188

BRAKE SHOE OPERATING DEVICE h Filed Nov. 30 1925 Patented July 9, 1929.

UNITED STATES 1,720,188 PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM NOWAK, AKRON, OHIO.

BRAKE-SHOE-OPERATI'NG .'DEVICE.

Application filed November 30, 1926. Serial No. 151,687.

wheels ot the truck are braked simultaneouslyv upon the operation of the main brake lever on the train.

Another object of the invention is the pro- !'ision of a'braking device for the wheels of the trucks of railroad cars or the like in which the brake shoes tor the wheels are arranged upon the ends ofthe arms of a movable frame which are connected for common operation ly Ineans oi? the air-brake main lever.

A further objectot the invention is the provision of a braking device for railroad cars or the like equipped with a movable trame, the arms of which are interconnected,

l1nd normally held in their inoperative position above the wheels by specially constructcd arms or links.

These and other objects and advantages ot the invention will become more fully known as the description thereof proceeds, and will then be specifically pointed out in the appended claims.

Y In the accompanying drawing forming a material part ot this disclosure:

Fig. 1 is a top plan view of a. truck tor railroad cars equipped with a braking device constructed according to the present inven- :15 tion.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof.

- Fig. 3 is a section on line 3-3 ot Figure 2.

AsI illustrated on the drawing: rlhe truck of a railroad car consists of the customary in iframe 10 in which the wheel axles 11 and 12 are jOurnaled in the customary manner, car- Y rying the wheels 13 equipped withy the customary rail engaging flanges 14. The upper truck trame bars 10, and the lower side bars .g5 15 ot the trame are connected by means of a plurality ot parallel bolts 16, headed at Y their upper and lower ends, and the traine bars on opposite sides ot `the truck are connectedI by medi an upper beam 17, and a lower beam 18. The upper beam 17 carries in its center a swivel socket for the swivel bolt of the car, said socket being designated 19. Pairwise arranged posts 20 to both sides of the median beams connect and brace the 55 upper and lower .trame bars 10 and 15 of the truck, while strong spiral springs 21 between the beams 17 and 18 cushion both beams, the

upper of which is not connected to the frame. A separate brake shoe 22 is provided tor 'cach wheel acting preferably against the top part ot the wheel, and eachshoe sits at the end of a curved arm 23 to whicliit is pivoted at 24. The lower ends ot each pair of arms 23 are connected by a straight bar or bars 25 or made integrally therewith, and the pair oi' bars 25, one on each side of the truck, are connected in approximately the middle by means of a cross-bar 26.

Near their upper ends they curved arms 23 carry eyes 27 to which are secured, pivotally the outer ends otlinks 28, the inner ends of which arepivotally attached to brackets 29 attached to the inner side faces of trame bars 10.

A rocking bar or trame 30 having upwardly directed inclined arms is loosely connected to approximately the middle of crossbar 26, as at 31, and one of the arms ot said trame 30, designated 32, is pivotally secured, as at 33, to a bracket 34 on the outer face of beam 17. An arm 35 is attached at one end to the trame bar 30, and to its other end a link 36 is pivotally attached, the upper end of which in turn is pivotally attached to the outer end of one arm 37 of a bell-crank lever tulcrumed to the front side bracket 38 on beam 17, While the other arm ot' the bell `crank lever, designated 39 has pivotally attached thereto the inner end of an operating link 40, the opposite end of which is pivotally attached to a lever 41 pivotally attached at its upper end to an eye 42 secured to the bottom ofthe railroad car. Intermediate its ends the lever' 41 has pivotally att-ached thereto a draw rod 43 adapted to be operated from the brake lever of the air-brake system adapted to operate the brake shoes while a rod 44 pivotally connected to the lower end of levei 41 is adapted to lift` the shoes from the wheels after each braking operation.

In the operation of my device, when the brakes are applied, the cross bar 26 is drawn downwardly which Will cause the outer ends of the links 28 to move accordingly, and in view of 'the fact that the inner ends of thelinksl 28; are pivotally secured Ato the lbrackets 29, the outer ends of said links 28 will move in an arc, but as the arc is very slight and some lost motion is provided in the pivots ot the links 2S, t-he arms 23 will move and give to an extent suilicient to allow the shoes 22 to engage the wheels and set up a braking action. Itwillf be-apparent that only a slight movement of the arms 23 is necessary to cause the shoes 22 to engage the wheels, as the normal position of the shoes will be approxi mately an inch above the wheels.

'The arms 23 will give as above-set forth, dueto the shape ot the membei's that make up the members 23 and bars 30 and also the size of t-hese members. The shape of these members as will be noted upon inspection of Figure 2, are substantially in the form. of a U, and as the members are approximately five feet long, from the end of. one arm to the end of the companion arm, it will be apparent that they will give to ac considerable extent more especially in view ot the inherent resiliency of the material from which the membeis will be made, and this last mentioned quality of the members, namely the inherent resiliency thereof will result in tlie members always assuming their natural shape, when the operation of tlie brakes is completed.

From the abovedescription and disclosure in the drawings, it will be apparent that upon the operation of the air brakelever the draw rod 43 in the direction of the arrow, the slices 22 will simultaneously engage the wheels, while upon the operation of rod 44 in the direction of its arrow the shoes will disengage simultaneously from the wheels.

It is to be understood that suchv changes may be made in the general arrangement of my device andthe constructioniot its minor details as come within the scope of t-he a pended claims without departing from t e Vspirit of my. invention as described and shown.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim asV new and desire to secure byfLetters Patent is:

l. In a` braking device for the wheels of railrgady car trucks a brake shoe for each truck. wheel, curved arms connecting two shoes on each side of the truck, means for couplingY tli'e ar-ins, links pivotally secured at one end-to the upper, edges ot' said arms near their upper endsv and: pivotally secured at their other ends to brackets attached to the upper part of the truck hamaca-rocking bar loosely connected intermediate its ends to the center ofJ said coupling means, and secured at one end to the center truck frame bar at one side,a link connection at the otheifend of; saidrocking bar, a bellcranklever'to oney arm of whichv saidfr linkzconnection is pivot'- ally connected fulcruined to a bracket on the opposite side ofthe upper part. ot the truck frame, a draw rod pivotally attached at one end to the' other arm of said bell-crank lever and at its other end to' alever pivoted at its upper end to the car bottom, and aZ draw rod pivotally secured to the lower end of said lever.4

2. A braking device for the wheels of railroad car trucks, comprising a frame consisting of upper and lower side bars in which shoesfarepivotally connected?, means formov- 'ablysecuring"l saldi arms intermediate their ends to the upper truck trame side bars, a means for connecting said curved arms, and a means adapted to be operated by the operation ot: the main brake lever et a train, and associated with saidy connecting means for simultaneously applyingthe brake shoes, and a means for releasing said bra-ke shoes from the wheels.

3. In a braking device for the wheels of a railroad car truck comprising a pair of curved arms, shoes pivoted at the upper ends of each of' said arms, links pivotally securing said armsv near their-'upper ends to the truck frame, a cross-bar connecting said arms at the i'ind'erside o"V the truck frame, two superposed median cross-beams on the truck frame, brackets secured to the front and rear face of the upper cross-beam, a rocking bai' looselyL connected intermediate its ends to n said cross-bar, an upwardly curved end on said rocking bar pivotally attachedfto one of said brackets, a link connection at the other end of said rocking bar, abell crank lever attacliedto the bracket oppositeto the'bracket to: which` said rocking-baris secured and attached to the crossbeam" oitI tlie'truck frame on top thereof, one arm of said bell crank lever attaclied-toisaidlink connection. a: draw rod securedat its inner end'to-saidbell-crank lever at! the other arin thereof', a lever pivotally depending trom the car bottom at its upper endg-adraw rod,l pii'fotally securedto said lever intermediate the ends thereof, and adapted to be operated from the-main brake lever of a-train, a rodfpivotallysecuredto the lower end'of saidflink` for releasing the brake shoes atter they have been applied by the operation ofsaid di'aw rod.V

Signed at Akron in the county ofi Summit and State ofOhio this 30th day of October,

VILLIAM NOWAK. 

